18. Notes
Notes [←1] That is, this particular treatise, and A Practical Exposition Upon Psalms 130.
[←2] Romans 7:21 I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.
[←3] To eject from a post; to displace
[←4] To discourse about something in great detail, clarifying its meaning or effects.
[←5] Romans 6:6; Ephesians 4:20-24; Colossians 3:9-10.
[←6] To rush headlong, at full speed.
[←7] Evince: To show or demonstrate clearly; to manifest, make known, or give expression to.
[←8] That is, nothing that should be controveresial or disputable.
[←9] That is, he wills to do good; and yet he does not.
[←10] Euvri,skw a;ra to.n no,mon, heurisko ara tou nomos [NT:2147, 686, 3551]
[←11] Qe,lonti evmoi. poiei/n to. kalo,n thelonti emoi poiein to kalon [NT:2309,1698,4160,2570]
[←12] Poiei/n a ‘marti,an poiein hamartian [NT:4160,266]
[←13] poiei/n to. kalo,n, poiein to kalon [NT :4160,2570]
[←14] Luke 6:45 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good;
[←15]
Romans 7:18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. [i.e., good is known, even if not in the flesh, but not how to do it.]
[←16] Emo.i to. kako.n para,keitai Emoi to kakon parakeitai [NT: 1698,2556,3873]
[←17] Conversation: the conduct of our life in public; our way of life.
[←18]
νόμος Kurieu,ei tou/ avnqrw,ou —nomos Kurieuei tou anthruuou [NT:3551,2961,444], or anthropa (man).
[←19] kurieu,ei kurieuei [NT:2961]
[←20] basileu,ein, basileuein [NT:936]
[←21] kurieu,ein kurieuein [NT:2961]
[←22] That is, the power of sin is broken, but the habit (the custom) of sin remains.
[←23]
Revelation 21:8 But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.
[←24] That is, insight.
[←25]
Romans 2:14 for when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these, although not having the law, are a law to themselves, 15 who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them)...
[←26]
Romans 7:18 ...for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good, I do not find. Romans 7:21 I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good.
[←27]
Genesis 6:5. Also, Genesis 8:21 Then the LORD said in His heart, “I will never again curse the ground for man’s sake, although the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth;
[←28] Allowing passage or entrance.
[←29]
Matthew 3:10 “And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
[←30] That is, it promises more at the start, than it delivers at the end.
[←31] fro,nhma th/j sarko,j, phronema tes sarkos [NT:5427,4561]
[←32] e;cqra eivj Qeo,n, exthra eis Theon [NT:2189,1519,2316]
[←33]
NET Jdgs 1:19 The LORD was with Judah. They conquered the hill country, but they could not conquer the people living in the coastal plain, because they had chariots with iron-rimmed wheels.
[←34] Genesis 41:20-21.
[←35]
2 Chronicles 18:29-32 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise myself and go into battle; but you put on your robes.” So the king of Israel disguised himself, and they went into battle. 30 Now the king of Syria had commanded the captains of the chariots who were with him, saying, “Fight with no one small or great, but only with the king of Israel.” 31 So it was, when the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, that they said, “It is the king of Israel!” Therefore they surrounded him to attack; but Jehoshaphat cried out, and the LORD helped him, and God diverted them from him. 32 For so it was, when the captains of the chariots saw that it was not the king of Israel, that they turned back from pursuing him.
[←36] That is, there is no battle to be fought: the person offers no resistance, or has left the field of battle altogether.
[←37]
John 4:9 Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?” For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.
[←38] Wandering aimlessly in search of pleasure.
[←39]
Ezekiel 33:31 “So they come to you as people do, they sit before you as My people, and they hear your words, but they do not do them; for with their mouth they show much love, but their hearts pursue their own gain. Also, Isaiah 29:13 Therefore the Lord said: “Inasmuch as these people draw near with their mouths And honor Me with their lips, But have removed their hearts far from Me, And their fear toward Me is taught by the commandment of men;
[←40] Exceedingly harmful; they work or spread in a hidden and injurious way, like a disease.
[←41] Allh,loij avnti,keitai. allelois antikeitai [NT:240,480]
[←42] That is, ongoing and fixed.
[←43]
Acts 7:19 This man dealt treacherously [katasophizomai] with our people, and oppressed our forefathers, making them expose their babies, so that they might not live.
[←44] katasofisa,menoj, katasophizamenos [NT:2686]
[←45] A projecting ridge on a mountain or submerged under water.
[←46] Galatians 5:17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh;
[←47]
Romans 7:23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. James 4:1 Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? 1 Peter 2:11 Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul,
[←48] Ecclesiastes 9:3 Truly the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil; madness is in their hearts while they live;
[←49]
2 Corinthians 7:1 Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
[←50] Romans 7:17 But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.
[←51] In a military sense: a surprise attack or ambush that shocks and stuns the victim.
[←52] yTi[.d;y” aOl — Lo’ yada’ti [OT:03045,08804]
[←53] Ea.n prolhfqh/| ean prolephthe [NT:1437,4301]
[←54] prolhfqh/| prolephthe [NT:4301]
[←55]
Originally, “This prevents the soul with its figments.” – prevent in Middle English can mean precede. Figments are thoughts; but in this context, what the soul thinks to do, what it would do, is thwarted by indwelling sin.
[←56] Romans 7:24 O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?
[←57]
Psalms 38:17-18 “For I am ready to halt [or fall], and my sorrow is continually before me. For I will declare my iniquity; I will be in anguish over my sin.”
[←58] !wOkn” [lic,l. ynia]-yKi — ki-’ani letsela’ nakon [OT:03559,08737,06761]
[←59] In Psalms 38:17-18, we may fall into snares set for us by others; and in this Psalm, we may fall into snares set for us in our own hearts by indwelling sin.
[←60] Epiqumei/ epithumei [NT:1937]
[←61] Apo. panto.j ei;douj ponhrou/ avpe,cesqe apo pantos eidous ponerou apexesthe [NT:575, 3956, 1491, 4191, 567]
[←62] avntistrateuo,menon tw/| no,mw| tou/ noo,j mou, antistrateuomenon to nomo tou noos mou [NT:497, 3551, 3563]
[←63] avntistrateu,esqai antistrateuesthai [NT:497]
[←64]
Romans 7:15 “Foir what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do.”
[←65] To. katerga,zesqai to. kalo.n ouvk eu ‘ri,skw To katergazesthai to kalon ouk heurisko [NT:2716, 2570, 3756, 2147]
[←66] Diw,kw, dioko [NT:1377] – to pursue, harass, or persecute.
[←67] Epektei,nomai, epekteinomai [NT1901] – to stretch out towards.
[←68] Kata. skopo.n diw,kw, kata skopon dioko [NT:2596, 4649, 1377]
[←69] This term simply means walking close to God in faithful obedience (Genesis 5:24; Genesis 6:9; Psalms 23:4; Matthew 16:24).
Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!
E’en though it be a cross that raises me, Still all my song shall be, nearer, my God, to Thee. (Sarah Adams, 1841)
[←70] Strateu,ontai kata. th/v yuch/j strateuontai kata to psuches [NT:4754, 2596, 5590]
[←71] Strateu,ontai evn toi/j me,lesin u ‘mw/n, strateuontai en tois melesin humon [NT:4754, 3196, 5216]
[←72] Antistrateu,esqai antistrateuesthai [NT:497]
[←73] strateu,esqai strateuesthai [NT:4754]
[←74] Romans 13:14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.
[←75]
Th/j sarko.j pro,noian mh. poiei/sqe eivj evpiqumi,aj tes sarkos pronoian me poieisthe eis epithumias [NT:4561, 4307, 1519, 1939]
[←76] That is, it will importune to have us satisfy the lusts of our flesh.
[←77]
Galatians 6:1 Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted.
[←78] Jabez means “pain,” sorrow, or trouble, 1 Chronicles 4:9.
[←79]
1 Timothy 6:9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
[←80]
Jeremiah 2:24 A wild donkey used to the wilderness, That sniffs at the wind in her desire; In her time of mating, who can turn her away? All those who seek her will not weary themselves; In her month they will find her. Hosea 8:9 For they have gone up to Assyria, Like a wild donkey alone by itself; Ephraim has hired lovers.
[←81]
Jeremiah 50:38 A drought is against her waters, and they will be dried up. For it is the land of carved images, And they are insane with their idols.
[←82] Holding tenaciously to a purpose, belief, opinion, or course of action.
[←83]
2 Peter 2:14 having eyes full of adultery and that cannot cease from sin, enticing unstable souls. They have a heart trained in covetous practices, and are accursed children.
[←84]
Isaiah 57:17 For the iniquity of his covetousness I was angry and struck him; I hid and was angry, And he went on backsliding in the way of his heart.
[←85]
Genesis 21:9-10 And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, scoffing. 10 Therefore she said to Abraham, “Cast out this bondwoman and her son; for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son (namely with Isaac).”
[←86]
Ephesians 4:23-24 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.
[←87]
2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
[←88]
Romans 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
[←89]
Hosea 2:6 "Therefore, behold, I will hedge up your way with thorns, And wall her in, So that she cannot find her paths.
[←90]
Hosea 2:9; Hosea 2:11-12 “Therefore I will return and take away My grain in its time And My new wine in its season, And will take back My wool and My linen, Given to cover her nakedness... 11 I will also cause all her mirth to cease, Her feast days, Her New Moons, Her Sabbaths-- All her appointed feasts. 12 “And I will destroy her vines and her fig trees, Of which she has said, ‘These are my wages that my lovers have given me.’ So I will make them a forest, And the beasts of the field shall eat them.
[←91]
Job 33:17 In order to turn man from his deed, And conceal pride from man, 18 He keeps back his soul from the Pit, And his life from perishing by the sword. 19 "Man is also chastened with pain on his bed, And with strong pain in many of his bones,
[←92] That is, frivolous and vanishing like a vapor.
[←93]
1 Timothy 2:13 For Adam was formed first, then Eve. 14 And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression.
[←94]
2 Corinthians 11:3 But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
[←95]
Revelation 20:10 The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
[←96]
See also, 1 Corinthians 6:9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites; 1 Corinthians 15:33 Do not be deceived: “Evil company corrupts good habits.” Luke 21:8 And He said: “Take heed that you not be deceived. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am He,’ and, ‘The time has drawn near.’ Therefore do not go after them.
[←97] That is, fictions.
[←98] That is, falsehoods.
[←99]
Genesis 3:4 Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5 “For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
[←100]
Genesis 3:12 Then the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.”
[←101] See Owen’s treatise Of Temptation.
[←102] That is, with an apparent short-term benefit, regardless of long-term consequences.
[←103] Preventing them from “conceiving” and thus producing fruit.
[←104]
See chapter 9.
[←105]
Luke 18:13 “And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’ 14 “I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
[←106] Not a sense of the meaning of sin per se, but a sensibility (an awareness) of the evil and the danger of sin.
[←107]
Also, Romans 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
[←108]
Romans 3:20-21 Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin. 21 But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed; Romans 3:31 Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law.
[←109] That is, they think of their sin as unimportant, minor, or trivial.
[←110] Armed forces that are not on active duty, but can be called upon in an emergency.
[←111] John 17:16 “They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.
[←112] Originally, “by the way”.
[←113] Psalms 51:5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me.
[←114]
Isaiah 30:22 You will also defile the covering of your graven images of silver, And the ornament of your molded images of gold. You will throw them away as an unclean thing; You will say to them, “Get away!”
[←115]
Hosea 14:2 Take words with you, And return to the LORD. Say to Him, “Take away all iniquity; Receive us graciously, For we will offer the sacrifices of our lips.
[←116]
Micah 1:13 O inhabitant of Lachish, Harness the chariot to the swift steeds (She was the beginning of sin to the daughter of Zion), For the transgressions of Israel were found in you.
[←117]
1 Corinthians 14:15 What is the conclusion then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding.
[←118] Galatians 6:16 And as many as walk according to this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God.
[←119] Vitiated: rendered ineffective; made corrupt or imperfect (marred).
[←120] The trait of forgetting or ignoring your responsibilities.
[←121]
Amos 5:25-26 “Did you offer Me sacrifices and offerings In the wilderness forty years, O house of Israel? 26 You also carried Sikkuth your king And Chiun, your idols, The star of your gods, Which you made for yourselves.
[←122]
Hosea 10:1-2 Israel empties his vine; He brings forth fruit for himself. According to the multitude of his fruit He has increased the altars; According to the bounty of his land They have embellished his sacred pillars. 2 Their heart is divided; Now they are held guilty. He will break down their altars; He will ruin their sacred pillars.
[←123]
Genesis 39:8-9 But he refused and said to his master’s wife, “Look, my master does not know what is with me in the house, and he has committed all that he has to my hand. 9 “There is no one greater in this house than I, nor has he kept back anything from me but you, because you are his wife.
[←124] That is, a unique proprietary right that belongs only to a child of God.
[←125] Proverbs 14:10 The heart knows its own bitterness, And a stranger does not share its joy.
[←126] That is, what this sin leads to in time.
[←127] Deuteronomy 32:29 Oh, that they were wise, that they understood this, That they would consider their latter end!
[←128]
“An abundant supply of grace and strength shall be freely afforded, to carry you through all the duties and trials of life; and when that shall be ended, an admission will be granted.” John Gill – Commentary.
[←129] The trait of forgetting or ignoring your responsibilities.
[←130] Originally, “bosom”: the breast pocket.
[←131]
Fleeting.
[←132]
Song of Solomon 5:2 THE SHULAMITE I sleep, but my heart is awake; It is the voice of my beloved! He knocks, saying, “Open for me, my sister, my love, My dove, my perfect one; For my head is covered with dew, My locks with the drops of the night.” 3 I have taken off my robe; How can I put it on again? I have washed my feet; How can I defile them?
[←133] Marginal reading in the authorized version. — ED.
[←134] Proverbs 23:32 At the last it bites like a serpent, And stings like a viper.
[←135]
Ephesians 2:3 among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.
[←136]
Proverbs 23:31-32 Do not look on the wine when it is red, When it sparkles in the cup, When it swirls around smoothly; 32 At the last it bites like a serpent, And stings like a viper.
[←137] A threat of divine punishment or vengeance.
[←138] A partial excuse to mitigate censure; an attempt to represent an offense as less serious than it appears by showing mitigating circumstances.
[←139]
2 Corinthians 4:17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, 18 while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.
[←140]
“Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. 21 I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good.” (Romans 7:20-21) That is, Paul says he sins against his own will to do good. Was it therefore not sin under this reasoning that if it isn’t voluntary, it isn’t sin? Some reconcile this seeming excuse for sin, by concluding that Paul describes his life apart from Christ in 7.21; while Romans chapter 8 describes his life in Christ, being led by the Spirit. Others point to verse 7.25, “with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin;” they conclude that this unwilling sin is indeed his life in Christ, and it simply means that when he sins, he serves the law of sin; and when he does not sin, he serves the law of God (the law of grace), just as Owen described it in chapters 2 and 6. There Owen points out that sin’s dominion and power are broken in the believer. Therefore, he concludes here, if its dominion is broken, and a believer sins, it can only be done willfully. Perhaps he saw a distinction between willfully, and willingly. If a man cannot act apart from the will, then even if a person acts under compulsion, he would be committing a willful act. How can that be? By way of explanation, Owen will now present the “twofold consent of the will.” – WHG
[←141]
Luke 22:61-62 “And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” 62 So Peter went out and wept bitterly.”
[←142] Originally, “so circumstantiate” – giving circumstantial evidence that it is good.
[←143]
2 Peter 2:18-19 For when they speak great swelling words of emptiness, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through lewdness, the ones who have actually escaped from those who live in error. 19 While they promise them liberty, they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by whom a person is overcome, by him also he is brought into bondage. Also, Romans 6:1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live in it any longer?
[←144]
1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
[←145]
“But God be thanked that you were the servants of sin: but you have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered to you.” (Romans 6:17)
[←146] A selfish person who is unwilling to give or spend.
[←147]
1 Samuel 25:10-13 Then Nabal answered David’s servants, and said, “Who is David, and who is the son of Jesse? There are many servants nowadays who break away each one from his master. 11 “Shall I then take my bread and my water and my meat that I have killed for my shearers, and give it to men when I do not know where they are from?” 12 So David’s young men turned on their heels and went back; and they came and told him all these words. 13 Then David said to his men, “Every man gird on his sword.” So every man girded on his sword, and David also girded on his sword. And about four hundred men went with David, and two hundred stayed with the supplies.
[←148]
1 Samuel 25:33-34 “And blessed is your advice and blessed are you [Abigail], because you have kept me this day from coming to bloodshed and from avenging myself with my own hand. 34 “For indeed, as the LORD God of Israel lives, who has kept me back from hurting you, unless you had hastened and come to meet me, surely by morning light no males would have been left to Nabal!”
[←149]
2 Chronicles 16:10 Then Asa was angry with the seer [Hanani], and put him in prison [in stocks], for he was enraged at him because of this. And Asa oppressed some of the people at that time.
[←150]
NLT Proverbs 23:29-35 Who has anguish? Who has sorrow? Who is always fighting? Who is always complaining? Who has unnecessary bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes? 30 It is the one who spends long hours in the taverns, trying out new drinks. 31 Don’t gaze at the wine, seeing how red it is, how it sparkles in the cup, how smoothly it goes down. 32 For in the end it bites like a poisonous snake; it stings like a viper. 33 You will see hallucinations, and you will say crazy things. 34 You will stagger like a sailor tossed at sea, clinging to a swaying mast. 35 And you will say, “They hit me, but I didn’t feel it. I didn’t even know it when they beat me up. When will I wake up so I can look for another drink?”
[←151] That is, actually or practically.
[←152]
Genesis 20:5 “Did [Abraham] not say to me, ‘She is my sister ‘? And [Sarah], even she herself said, ‘He is my brother.’ In the integrity of my heart and innocence of my hands I have done this.”
[←153] In other words, the one who is “ignorant” has a practical knowledge of sin, when he isn’t misled by the deceit of sin; but the other who is “knowledgeable,” has a practical ignorance of sin, when he doesn’t see the deceit at work.
[←154] James 1:15 Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.
[←155]
Matthew 5:28 “But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
[←156]
2Kngs 18:35 ‘Who among all the gods of the lands have delivered their countries from my hand, that the LORD should deliver Jerusalem from my hand?’”
[←157]
2Kngs 19:28 Because your rage against Me and your tumult Have come up to My ears, Therefore I will put My hook in your nose And My bridle in your lips, And I will turn you back By the way which you came.
[←158]
2Kngs 19:35 And it came to pass on a certain night that the angel of the LORD went out, and killed in the camp of the Assyrians one hundred and eighty-five thousand; and when people arose early in the morning, there were the corpses-- all dead.
[←159] Rapine - despoiling a country through warfare, theft, plundering, destroying, and stripping the land.
[←160]
Genesis 6:12 So God looked upon the earth, and indeed it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth. 13 And God said to Noah, “The end of all flesh has come before Me, for the earth is filled with violence through them; and behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
[←161]
2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
[←162]
Owen offers an expanded translation found in the HCSB: Micah 2:1 Woe to those who dream up wickedness and prepare evil plans on their beds! At morning light they accomplish it because the power is in their hands.
[←163]
1 Samuel 23:27 But a messenger came to Saul, saying, “Hasten and come, for the Philistines have invaded the land!”
[←164]
Genesis 27:41 So Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father blessed him, and Esau said in his heart, “The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then I will kill my brother Jacob.”
[←165]
Genesis 32:11 “Deliver me, I pray, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, lest he come and attack me and the mother with the children.
[←166] Genesis 33:4 But Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept.
[←167]
Genesis 31:24 But God had come to Laban the Syrian in a dream by night, and said to him, “Be careful that you speak to Jacob neither good nor bad.”
[←168]
Micah 2:1 Woe to those who devise iniquity, And work out evil on their beds! At morning light they practice it, Because it is in the power of their hand.
[←169]
Common and temporary things, like arguments, are only “grace” when they are empowered or made effectual by God through His Spirit. It is His relation to them, using them to attain his will, that makes them grace.
[←170]
Acts 24:25 Now as he reasoned about righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come, Felix was afraid and answered, “Go away for now; when I have a convenient time I will call for you.”
[←171]
Job 31:1 “I have made a covenant with my eyes; Why then should I look upon a young woman? 2 For what is the allotment of God from above, And the inheritance of the Almighty from on high? 3 Is it not destruction for the wicked, And disaster for the workers of iniquity?
[←172]
1 Samuel 25:31-32 “that this will be no grief to you, nor offense of heart to my lord, either that you have shed blood without cause, or that my lord has avenged himself. But when the LORD has dealt well with my lord, then remember your maidservant.” Then David said to Abigail: “Blessed is the LORD God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me!
[←173]
Job 33:15 In a dream, in a vision of the night, When deep sleep falls upon men, While slumbering on their beds, 16 Then He opens the ears of men, And seals their instruction. 17 In order to turn man from his deed, And conceal pride from man, 18 He keeps back his soul from the Pit, And his life from perishing by the sword.
[←174]
Hosea 11:7-10 My people are bent on backsliding from Me. Though they call to the Most High, None at all exalt Him. 8 “How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel? How can I make you like Admah? How can I set you like Zeboiim? My heart churns within Me; My sympathy is stirred. 9 I will not execute the fierceness of My anger; I will not again destroy Ephraim. For I am God, and not man, The Holy One in your midst; And I will not come with terror. 10 “They shall walk after the LORD. He will roar like a lion. When He roars, Then His sons shall come trembling from the west;
[←175]
Isaiah 57:17-18 For the iniquity of his covetousness I was angry and struck him; I hid and was angry, And he went on backsliding in the way of his heart. 18 I have seen his ways, and will heal him; I will also lead him, And restore comforts to him And to his mourners.
[←176]
Chap. 8 – The fourth is birthing sin in its actual accomplishment: “When lust has conceived it gives birth to sin.”
[←177]
Genesis 9:7-11 And as for you, be fruitful and multiply; Bring forth abundantly in the earth And multiply in it.” 8 Then God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying: 9 “And as for Me, behold, I establish My covenant with you and with your descendants after you, 10 “and with every living creature that is with you: the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the earth with you, of all that go out of the ark, every beast of the earth. 11 “Thus I establish My covenant with you: Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood; never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.” Genesis 9:20-21 And Noah began to be a farmer, and he planted a vineyard. 21 Then he drank of the wine and was drunk, and became uncovered in his tent.
[←178]
Genesis 19:35-38 Then they made their father drink wine that night also. And the younger arose and lay with him, and he did not know when she lay down or when she arose. 36 Thus both the daughters of Lot were with child by their father. 37 The firstborn bore a son and called his name Moab; he is the father of the Moabites to this day. 38 And the younger, she also bore a son and called his name Ben-Ammi; he is the father of the people of Ammon to this day.
[←179]
2 Samuel 11:2-5 Then it happened one evening that David arose from his bed and walked on the roof of the king’s house. And from the roof he saw a woman bathing, and the woman was very beautiful to behold. 3 So David sent and inquired about the woman. And someone said, “Is this not Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?” 4 Then David sent messengers, and took her; and she came to him, and he lay with her, for she was cleansed from her impurity; and she returned to her house. 5 And the woman conceived; so she sent and told David, and said, “I am with child.” 2 Samuel 11:14-15 In the morning it happened that David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by the hand of Uriah. And he wrote in the letter, saying, “Set Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retreat from him, that he may be struck down and die.”
[←180]
2 Kings 20:12-17 At that time Berodach-Baladan the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he heard that Hezekiah had been sick. 13 And Hezekiah was attentive to them, and showed them all the house of his treasures-- the silver and gold, the spices and precious ointment, and all his armory-- all that was found among his treasures. There was nothing in his house or in all his dominion that Hezekiah did not show them. 14 Then Isaiah the prophet went to King Hezekiah, and said to him, “What did these men say, and from where did they come to you?” So Hezekiah said, “They came from a far country, from Babylon.” 15 And he said, “What have they seen in your house?” So Hezekiah answered, “They have seen all that is in my house; there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shown them.” 16 Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Hear the word of the LORD: 17 ‘Behold, the days are coming when all that is in your house, and what your fathers have accumulated until this day, shall be carried to Babylon; nothing shall be left,’ says the LORD.
[←181]
KJV 2 Chronicles 17:3 And the LORD was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the first ways of his father David, and sought not unto Baalim; — This verse can mean “as it was in the days of David” [NKJ “former ways, of David”], or it can mean “David’s first ways,” i.e., as David was in his youth, before Bathsheba. – WHG.
[←182]
Isaiah 3:24 And so it shall be: Instead of a sweet smell there will be a stench; Instead of a sash, a rope; Instead of well-set hair, baldness; Instead of a rich robe, a girding of sackcloth; And branding instead of beauty.
[←183]
Romans 8:9 But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His [KJV “none of his”]. Also, John 13:8”If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.”
[←184]
Ephesians 4:11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ.
[←185] Hebrews 2:1 Therefore we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away.
[←186]
Isaiah 49:8-10 Thus says the LORD: “In an acceptable time I have heard You, And in the day of salvation I have helped You; I will preserve You and give You As a covenant to the people, To restore the earth, To cause them to inherit the desolate heritages; 9 That You may say to the prisoners, ‘Go forth,’ To those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves.’ “They shall feed along the roads, And their pastures shall be on all desolate heights. 10 They shall neither hunger nor thirst, Neither heat nor sun shall strike them; For He who has mercy on them will lead them, Even by the springs of water He will guide them.
[←187] Derived, developed, or evolved from.
[←188] Christ did not give us life merely for us to survive, but to thrive.
[←189] That is, they make their way through the opening in the veins and arteries.
[←190] Revelation 3:18; Malachi 4:2.
[←191] The trait of forgetting or ignoring your responsibilities.
[←192] The frame of our mind and heart, as Owen uses it, is a biblical and doctrinal system of assumptions and standards, drawn from the Gospel and the Law, that sanction our behavior and give it meaning. It is the framework of thoughts, attitudes, and motivations for all we think and do. Therefore, “unframing the soul” dismantles that framework.
[←193]
Hebrews 12:28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. 29 For our God is a consuming fire.
[←194]
2 Corinthians 3:18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.
[←195] Marked by care and persistent effort.
[←196]
Luke 11:24 – The metaphor is given by Christ to show that he does not work by the power of Satan, but against it. This is proof that “the kingdom of God has come upon you” (v. 20). Owen’s point is not that we can lose our salvation, but that when “one stronger than Satan comes upon him, and overcomes him,” that overwhelming strength of Christ is kept in force by exercising faith in Christ, by constantly using the means of grace given to each believer, to work out his salvation in fear and trembling (Php 2:12). But the law of sin is at work in the believer to oppose and undermine those means, allowing Satan to exert his influence unopposed, tempting the believer to sin, and to doubt his salvation.
[←197]
1 Corinthians 9:27 But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.
[←198]
[←199] A consuming disease that wastes the body, like tuberculosis.
[←200]
Hosea 5:13 “When Ephraim saw his sickness, And Judah saw his wound, Then Ephraim went to Assyria And sent to King Jareb; Yet he cannot cure you, Nor heal you of your wound.
[←201]
Matthew 6:6 “But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.
[←202] A mixture that usually reduces the value of the combined elements.
[←203] Swelling from excessive accumulation of watery fluid in cells, tissues, or serous cavities.
[←204]
Fruit trees from from the tips of their branches. A “heading cut” removes part of a shoot or limb, which deprives that limb of a growing tip. A heading cut forces a limb to generate new growing tips in the form of new shoots. It shortens the limbs, but the newly generated growth below the cut increases branching and bushiness.
[←205] By “so dispose,” Owen refers back to using whatever knowledge they have to puff themselves up, rather than putting it into practice. The truth of God is turned into verbal and intellectual sport for personal amusement.
[←206]
Ezekiel 33:32 “Indeed you are to them as a very lovely song of one who has a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument; for they hear your words, but they do not do them.
[←207]
Isaiah 47:10 “For you have trusted in your wickedness; You have said, ‘No one sees me’; Your wisdom and your knowledge have warped you; And you have said in your heart, ‘I am, and there is no one else besides me.’
[←208] That is, all creatures are dependent on and obedient to God in their nature: they do what they were created to do. Creatures do it by what we call “instinct”, while man does it by choice. It is assumed, therefore, that man may act contrary to his nature, contrary to the law of his nature, and thus contrary to God – this is sin at work in him.
[←209]
Job 39:13-17 “The wings of the ostrich wave proudly, But are her wings and pinions like the kindly stork’s? 14 For she leaves her eggs on the ground, And warms them in the dust; 15 She forgets that a foot may crush them, Or that a wild beast may break them. 16 She treats her young harshly, as though they were not hers; Her labor is in vain, without concern, 17 Because God deprived her of wisdom, And did not endow her with understanding.
[←210] a;storgoi, astorgoi [NT:794]
[←211]
Galatians 5:19 Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies...
[←212] See his work entitled, “A Dissertation on Divine Justice,” Works of John Owen, vol. 10, chap. 4.
[←213]
Matthew 10:28 “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
[←214]
2 Peter 2:18 For when they speak great swelling words of emptiness, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through lewdness, the ones who have actually escaped from those who live in error. 19 While they promise them liberty, they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by whom a person is overcome, by him also he is brought into bondage. 20 For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning.
[←215]
Hebrews 6:4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5 and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come...
[←216]
James 1:14 But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. 15 Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.
[←217] Psalms 114:8 Who turned the rock into a pool of water, The flint into a fountain of waters (re Deuteronomy 8:15).
[←218]
Jeremiah 2:24 A wild donkey used to the wilderness, That sniffs at the wind in her desire; In her time of mating, who can turn her away? All those who seek her will not weary themselves; In her month they will find her.
[←219]
2 Peter 2:20-22 For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning. 21 For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them. 22 But it has happened to them according to the true proverb: “A dog returns to his own vomit,” and, “a sow, having washed, to her wallowing in the mire.”
[←220] Originally, “draughts,” a 17th c. term for a privy, latrine, cesspool.
[←221]
Galatians 5:19 Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, 21 envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
[←222]
Owen argues at the start of chapter 2 that the dominion of sin is broken in the believer, even though its presence remains. See the distinctions he makes there, to better understand what he means here by the dominion of sin.
[←223]
Greek mythology; Antaeus was the son of Poseidon and Gaia. He was strong only as long as he touched his mother earth; but once lifted into the air, he became as weak as other men. Antaeus challenged Hercules to a wrestling match to the death; Hercules discovered the secret of Antaeus’ power: holding him aloft, he crushed him in a bearhug.
[←224] An adamant is a very hard rock, diamond-like.
[←225] Precise: pedantic, overly concerned with rules; proper or “straight-laced.”
[←226]
Goold substituted “flattering him with the mouth.” (Psalms 78:36). But Isaiah 29:13 is as likely, “these people draw near with their mouths And honor Me with their lips, But have removed their hearts far from Me;”
[←227] That is, a feeling of shame when something immoral is done.
[←228] Proverbs 28:15; Romans 3:13; Revelation 13:2.
[←229]
Isaiah 11:6-9 "The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, The leopard shall lie down with the young goat, The calf and the young lion and the fatling together; And a little child shall lead them. 7 The cow and the bear shall graze; Their young ones shall lie down together; And the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 8 The nursing child shall play by the cobra’s hole, And the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper’s den. 9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD As the waters cover the sea.
[←230]
Colossians 2:23 These things indeed have an appearance [a show] of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body [i.e., asceticism], but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh.
[←231] Referring to Owen’s work, The Mortification of Sin.
[←232]